We’ve discussed in the past how VR can take you to different worlds and relive certain experiences you may have already done. But what about going to places you’ve only dreamed of? Well, VR can help with that too. Let’s talk about bucket lists.
Bucket lists, as we all know, are things we have planned that we always wanted to do, but for some people life gets in the way or we prioritize other aspects of life. The benefit of VR in this case is the fact that it can grant those wishes to anybody at any time, at least in part. There are two sides to this, one being recreation, the other healthcare. Let’s talk about both of these.
Let’s first talk about recreation because VR has the ability to show people things they may have never imagined or sometimes, things they’ve always wanted to see. A perfect example of this is Google Earth VR. With a simple click of a button you can be transported all the way around the world to see your dream destination. See the beaches you want to lounge on, the mountains you want to climb, the rivers you want to swim in or even the caves you wish to crawl through. All of this is possible and accessible to anyone who sets foot into a store like ours.
Then there’s the other side. The folks who’ve always wanted to go to these places but never could, or can’t anymore. Whether it’s because of health conditions or just simply running out of time, VR can be used to grant those last wishes. Let’s talk about two examples of people doing this in the last year or two.
The first example is from St. Luke’s Hospice in the UK, where a terminally ill diver wanted to explore the Great Barrier Reef. Knowing he would never be able to dive it, they called up a local company to see if they could help. They agreed to help out and brought in an HTC Vive and played a very popular experience for this gentleman called The Blu. The diver was so thrilled to be in the water again and he said it was absolutely stunning.
The second example I want to talk about is something a little closer to home for us. Here in Toronto, we have a health care system called the Sinai Health System, which is a group of hospitals and care centers that had a lovely volunteer come in with the dream of creating curated content for ill patients. His focus is on video and he goes out into the world and films footage to then show the patient. David Parker, who still remains a volunteer, has seen dozens of patients and has created content specific to their needs. I’m sure he has granted many last wishes to patients and his work is known throughout the entire health care system.
Although VR currently has a major focus for games, we have seen many applications beginning to spread into the world with various uses for the technology. Granting final wishes to the terminally ill seems like a very soul-fulfilling thing to do. Seeing the joy in the patient as they experience something that has long been a dream for them must be completely rewarding.
If you haven’t tried Virtual Reality yet, come to VRPlayin and experience it for yourself. We love sharing the wonders of this new technology and showing the potential is has for all kinds of industries in the future to come.
